The structures upon which people sit can include chairs, benches, stools, pews, recliners, lounges, and the like. The structures typically share several commonalities. A generally horizontal seating portion is supported by one or more generally vertical legs. A generally vertical back portion is connected to the seating portion in some manner. For example, a chair typically has four vertical legs supporting a horizontal seating member, and a vertical back is attached to the seating member to allow an individual to lean backwardly in the chair with support. For another example, a bench typically has two vertical leg structures positioned opposite a horizontal elongated member surface upon which multiple people can sit. An elongated vertical back is attached to the seating member to allow an individual to lean backwardly in the bench with support.
The seating structures having these characteristics are limited in at least a few respects. In instances where the horizontal seating member is rigidly connected to vertical leg structure(s), the depth of the overall seating structure is constrained to at least the depth of the horizontal seating member. Further, the upper surface of the horizontal seating member remains in an exposed position to spills, inclement weather (outdoor seating), and the like. To that end, folding seats are well known in the art, such as those found in a sporting venue or movie theatre.
For any number of reasons, a bench may be preferable to a series of folding seats. For example, only one individual can sit in each of the series of the folding seats, whereas benches typically provide an individual to select where on the bench to seat oneself. Further, folding seats (and by extension, folding benches) either must manually lifted to the collapsed position by the individual, or a spring-like device is incorporated (e.g., a torsion spring). The former is burdensome on the individual, and the latter devices are prone to failure, particularly after thousands of use cycles.
Therefore, a need exists in the art for an improved bench that automatically returns to an upright position through more effective and intriguing means. Further, a need exists in the art for aesthetically-pleasing bench that responds and/or conforms to one or more users when in the seated position.